Indiana Hoosiers 2016 National Signing Day Wrap-Up

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Indiana Hoosiers 2016 National Signing Day Wrap-Up

Now that the whirlwind that National Signing Day always is, is now we are going to take you through the 2016 signing class for Indiana Football. Kevin Wilson and his staff signed 21 prospects to a class that Wilson admitted was geared toward the offensive side of the ball.

On paper this was not Kevin Wilson's best signing class. In fact, it was his lowest rated class since 2012. That is in-part due to how late this class came together, and how long it took to get an extension announced. However, this is a solid class for the Hoosiers. 

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2016 National Signing Day Profile: Marcelino Ball

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Marcelino Ball, 6’0”, 200 lbs., Roswell, GA, Roswell High School, 247Sports Composite – 3-star

 Written by: TJ Inman (@TJHoosierHuddle)

The Indiana Hoosiers got a surprise commitment from Marcelino Ball, a hard-hitting safety from Roswell, GA. Ball chose the Hoosiers over West Virginia and several others. Ball is rated as the 104th best safety and the 142nd best player in the state of Georgia. IU has developed a pipeline into the Peach State and Ball is the second recent commit hailing from that area (Shaun Bonner is the other).

The Ball family has a rich family history in the sport of football as three of his older brothers played Division One football (Reggie Jr. played at Georgia Tech, Raeshon played at Chattanooga and Marcus played at Memphis and plays for the Carolina Panthers). Ball will be the youngest member of this class as he doesn’t even turn 17 until April. He plans on graduating in May and enrolling at IU in the summer.

Marcelino Ball’s coach at Roswell High School, John Ford, told Alex McCarthy of 247Sports that Ball is, “an incredible player, incredible person, four years from now he will be THE STEAL from the state of Georgia.” He projects as one of the run-stopping hybrid safeties in Tom Allen’s 4-2-5 defense.

2016 National Signing Day Hoosier Profile: DE Allen Stallings

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2016 National Signing Day Hoosier Profile: DE Allen Stallings

Coming in at 6’2” and 230 pounds, he has a nice frame for a freshman. His film shows that he is somewhat raw, but also has truly explosive athletic ability for someone his size. He has an extremely quick and powerful first step off the ball, and this should make him an interesting player in IU’s new defensive attack moving forward. In an interview with Edgy Tim of Rivals.com, Stallings mentioned how excited he was that new defensive coordinator Tom Allen saw him as a standup defensive end at IU. With great size and speed, one comparison that immediately comes to mind is former standup defensive end/bandit Zack Shaw. While he is still very raw at this point, Stallings has great tools and was a desperately needed flip for a defense that now has five commitments in the 2016 class.

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2016 National Signing Day Hoosier Profile: Saftey Brandon Drayton

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2016 National Signing Day Hoosier Profile: Saftey Brandon Drayton

The Indiana coaches have become quite familiar with Largo High School. One year after welcoming Largo High alums Jonathan Crawford and Donavan Hale to Bloomington, the Hoosiers have added Brandon Drayton, a 6’2” safety. Drayton committed to IU on January 27 after deciding to decommit from Nebraska. Drayton is a 3-star recruit that played both offense and defense in high school but the IU coaches see him as a valuable member of the secondary that could excel in DC Tom Allan’s new 4-2-5 system. 

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2016 National Signing Day Hoosier Profile: ATH Jonah Morris

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2016 National Signing Day Hoosier Profile: ATH Jonah Morris

Morris is a very talented outside linebacker and tight end from Ohio. He was originally committed to Michigan State University but decommitted last November. He took an official visit to IU on January 22nd and committed just two days later. Morris also holds offers from thirteen other schools including Michigan State, Notre Dame, Wisconsin, Rutgers, and Pittsburgh. He is rated by 247’s Composite ranking as the 13th best player in Ohio and the 18th best “athlete” in the nation. 

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2016 National Signing Day Hoosier Profile: RB Cole Gest

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2016 National Signing Day Hoosier Profile: RB Cole Gest

The Indiana Hoosiers have had good success with players from the state of Ohio and they are hoping for more of the same from Cole Gest, a 3-star running back from Lakewood, Ohio that has officially signed his National Letter of Intent. Gest hails from powerhouse St. Edward’s and is the 124th best running back prospect in this class according to 247Sports. During the 2015 season, Gest ran the ball 270 times for 2097 yards and 25 touchdowns. He also caught 20 passes for 342 yards and three receiving touchdowns. 

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2016 National Signing Day Hoosier Profile: OL Grayson Stover

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Written By Avery Jones

Grayson Stover (Hudson, FL)
Position: Offensive Line
Height: 6’6”
Weight: 300
Ranking: 3-Star (247 Sports)

Stover is a big offensive tackle from Florida. He had previously committed to two other schools. His first commit was to the University of Virginia back in July of 2015. After decommitting from Virginia, he then committed to University of South Florida on January 20th. A week later, he changed his commitment to Indiana University. Stover had a total of 20 offers. Stover is rated by 247’s Composite ranking as the 130th best player in Florida and the 77th best offensive tackle prospect in the nation.

Stover joins the Indiana football team as one of four linemen in the 2016 recruiting class. However, he happens to be the biggest one, standing at 6-6 and 300 pounds— almost the size of Jason Spriggs. Stover has a lot of potential on the offensive line and is a great addition to Indiana’s already strong offense. 

In his senior year, Stover led an offensive line that produced two 1,000-yard rushers for his school. Despite his size, Stover has great foot speed and athletic ability that will help Coach Greg Frey train him to be an excellent offensive lineman. Hopefully he’ll produce similar results at IU as he was able to in his high school career. 


2016 National Signing Day Hoosier Profile: OL Ryan Smith

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2016 National Signing Day Hoosier Profile: OL Ryan Smith

One of the strengths of the Indiana football program is the offensive line. The Hoosiers O-Line features depth, size and talent and the coaching staff secured the services of a few more talented offensive line prospects to keep the line stocked for years to come. One of those prospects, Ryan Smith, made it official today as he signed his National Letter of Intent. Smith, a 6’5”, 280-pound prospect, played on both sides of the ball at Archbishop Moeller, one of the preeminent football programs in the Midwest.

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National Signing Day Hoosier Profile: QB Peyton Ramsey

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National Signing Day Hoosier Profile: QB Peyton Ramsey

The Hoosiers are starting to stock pile young talent at quarterback. After signing Austin King a year ago the Hoosiers signed another signal caller in Peyton Ramsey out of Elder High School in Cincinnati. Ramesy was the first player to verbally commit to the Hoosiers’ 2016 class. He held offers from Illinois, Boston College, Wake Forest, Cincinnati, as well as a hand full of other MAC-level schools.

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